New School University President Bob Kerrey said yesterday it is “unlikely” he will run for mayor – and suggested he might back a Democrat, even though he recently had agreed to support Mayor Bloomberg’s re-election.

Kerrey’s backing away from the race – and from Bloomberg – came as New School students and staff expressed surprise to hear the former Nebraska senator was considering leaving.

“Today, I am emphasizing my commitment and enthusiasm for my work at New School University,” said Kerrey, 61, a Democrat who recently signed a contract to stay at the downtown Manhattan school until 2011.

“Therefore, it is unlikely I will enter this race as a candidate. I intend to make a final decision and announcement later this week,” Kerrey’s statement continued.

Kerrey said last weekend that he was seriously thinking about seeking the Democratic mayoral nomination because he is unhappy about Bloomberg’s support for a West Side football stadium and what he described as the mayor’s low-key effort to secure more anti-terror funds from Congress.

Kerrey said that the flurry of speculation about whether he would run has “accelerated the need to [decide to] become a candidate or not.”

“The sun’s not going to set on Friday without me making this decision,” Kerrey told The Post. “I’m either going to be in or out.”

Kerrey also said “it’s possible” that if he decided not to run he would endorse one of the four declared Democratic mayoral candidates for the primary.

Asked whether he would now consider endorsing Bloomberg, Kerrey said, “I think it’s gotten a lot more difficult” in recent days for him to do so.

Kerrey’s latest comments are a turnabout, because he agreed only two weeks to head “Democrats for Bloomberg” at the request of the mayor and his campaign aides.

The Bloomberg campaign had no comment yesterday.

Democratic mayoral contenders were stunned to hear he was considering entering the race without any real preparation so close to the November election.

“I’m not a fan of Bob Kerrey,” said New School sophomore Cara Mitchell, 20, who used the word “dictatorship” to describe his tenure as president at the traditionally lefty university, which he joined in 2001. “I don’t feel like he’s really out to help the students at all.”

Aurin Squire, who is studying writing at the university’s Actors Studio Drama School, said Kerrey is “a bully” who typically ignores students’ concerns.

“He gets upset and yells a lot. If people yell or get angry he responds, so he’s great for bullying,” Squire said. “He has no experience doing this job, and he’s had enough problems as it is running a university. How’s he gonna run New York City?”

But Edyth Skinner, a part-time photography professor at the New School, said Kerrey would be a good mayor, arguing that, “He’s more interested in the underdog, more than Bloomberg, certainly.”

Skinner, 65, also said Kerrey is “accessible” to faculty and students.

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‘I am emphasizing my commitment and enthusiasm for my work at New School University. Therefore, it is unlikely I will enter this race as a candidate.’ – Bob Kerrey